: Esperion Therapeutics stock slumps 22% premarket as data from study of cholestrol-lowering drug fail to impress investors

The stock of Esperion Therapeutics Inc. ESPR slumped 22% in premarket trade Monday, as investors seemed to question whether data from a major study of its cholesterol-lowering drug Nexletol showing it reduced the  risk of heart attacks and some other cardiovascular problems in people who can’t tolerate statins would be enough to boost sales. Nexletol was granted approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in February of 2020, but sales have been less than stellar.  The company posted $18.8 million in total sales in the fourth quarter of 2022, below the $20.0 million FactSet consensus. On Saturday, the company released long awaited data on Nexletol, which doctors currently prescribe with a statin to help certain high-risk patients lower their cholesterol, as the Associated Press reported. The main finding: Nexletol-treated patients had a 13% lower risk of a group of major cardiac problems. JP Morgan analysts wrote in a note last week that a reading below the 15% bar for clinical meaningfulness might disappoint investors. “..This is not quite the upside surprise one might have hoped for and we believe the possibility of strategic interest will remain a debate,” they wrote in a Monday note. The stock has gained 49.5% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 SPX has fallen 6.5%.

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